What is a Private Proxy?

Like any other proxy type, a private one acts as an intermediary between you and the web server you’re requesting. However, there’s a special perk about them,  making them a more wholesome solution in terms of privacy and security online. The only way to stay anonymous is knowing how to hide IP addresses, and this is where private proxies come in handy.

What is a Private Proxy?

A private proxy plays the role of an intermediary between the client and the internet. Using a private proxy means that the client exclusively utilizes the dedicated IP address at a given time. The private proxy works by running the request through the proxy server (masking the client’s original IP address) and then only connecting to the internet resources to fulfill the client’s requests.

Whenever you are connected to the internet, your IP address allows other websites to track your browsing activities. The only way to get rid of this is to hide your IP address. That’s where private proxies are convenient.

How does it work？

How to ensure that you are the only user of the proxy? The way to go is AUTHENTICATION. Before you buy a private proxy, you should get a private proxy provider that provides the authentication system as part of his services for his private proxies. There are two common ways of private proxy authentication：

Username and Password Authentication

The first method is username and password authentication. This method is very common and it is frequently used among internet users. It is also very easy since all you need to provide are your login details which are your username and password. The format of private proxy is as:

IP: Port: username: password

Whitelist IP Authentication

The second method is IP Authentication. When you purchase a proxy from a private proxy provider, there is an IP address assigned to you. This IP can be used for authentication. It is a simple way to give you authorized access to proxies.

The proxy is the simplest but you can’t call it less secure compared to the username and password method. It has its pros and cons. You will have to whitelist your IP address with your private proxy provider which means you can only have access to the proxy from that Whitelist IPs alone.

Why do you need Private Proxies?

You need private proxies basically for the same reason why you’ll need a regular proxy. In essence, to mask your real IP address to hide your identity or bypass geo-restrictions.

Furthermore, you’ll need private proxies if you engage in online activities that require high anonymity levels. You have a lower risk of getting your activity being compromised as everything remains private.

Additionally, private proxies are very fast. Since there are no other network users, you won’t be sharing bandwidth with anyone who might slow the proxy speed. Plus, most private proxies have unlimited bandwidth; there’s no limit to the size of tasks you can take on.

What are the different types of Private Proxies?

• Transparent: Transparent proxies do not hide your IP address from the server you are accessing. They also will not encrypt your traffic. The downside to transparent proxies is that they can’t be used for secure web browsing, and may be blocked by some websites.
• Anonymous: Anonymous proxies hide your IP address and encrypt your traffic, which prevents third parties from seeing what you’re doing online. The downside to anonymous proxies is that they can’t be used for streaming videos or communicating with other people on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter because these services require personal information to log in.
• Secure: Secure proxies use SSL encryption and can be used for secure web browsing, streaming videos, and communicating on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter because they don’t retain any of your personal data.

The pluses of dealing with a private proxy

• Confident using – the name of the proxy tells itself. So it’s private and secure. By managing these proxies, nobody can access them. Your personal information is under the control of security, and this, in fact, is the most influential plus. Using the resources of the Internet, other users will think that you are the same user as them, with a hidden address.
• Numerous places. Usually, IP addresses are accessible from various locations. With this option, you can access resources that may not be available in your area. Your proxy server selects an IP address from the country whose profile you want to view.
• Speed as if it were your power.
• Since these are private proxies that are handled individually by one user, the probability of overloading is excluded. They are more reliable and have more bandwidth.

Use Cases of Private Proxies

Private proxies come in handy when collecting valuable data from the web. This is because most web administrators do not allow data extraction from their sites. By using a proxy, you can extract data from your target websites without having your IP address blocked.

Market Research
Understanding the market is any brand’s weapon against the competition. Web scraping involves automatically extracting data from the web, such as customer reviews, competitors’ moves, market trends, and customers’ needs. Using this information, you can make better decisions and develop strategies to keep you competitive and your customers happy.

Price Scraping
Like web scraping, prime scraping also involves data extraction from the internet. But in this case, you scrape data related to pricing. It helps you set competitive prices that keep your customers loyal. You can also attract price-sensitive customers without devaluing your products.

Travel Aggregators
Travel aggregators collect data from travel and hotel websites such as prices, availability of services, and discounts. They then add this valuable information to their website for their visitors to see and make better decisions when traveling. If this is your business, private proxies make it easy to extract data from your sources without raising suspicion.

SEO Monitoring
Optimizing your website for search engines makes your brand visible on the internet, attracts traffic to your site, and increases your conversion rate. An essential part of SEO is keywords. These are search terms that your target market uses to find industry-related information on the web. To find the right words, you need to extract data from your SEO competitors’ websites.

Conclusion

Using a private proxy is simple and secure. A good proxy provider with proper customer service can have you surfing the web anonymously in no time while keeping your personal data safe. There are always risks on the internet, but you can mitigate all of them through vetting and research.